Gov’t’s contract with Alibaba expected to be extended

The government expects to extend its partnership with Alibaba Group, the Deputy Director of the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP), Ng Wai Han, disclosed yesterday.
In August 2017, the government and Alibaba Group signed a “Framework Agreement of Strategic Cooperation on Smart City Development.” The agreement encompasses a series of projects to upgrade Macau’s development in cloud computing and big data technology, and is valid until 2021.
Ng said that due to the pandemic, service suppliers have been unable to travel to Macau to conduct field research, as cited in a report by TDM. This means some of the progress has been delayed, including the development of some online service platforms.
Due to these delays, the government plans to extend the agreement with Alibaba.
Ng did not reveal how long the extension will be, saying that the government is currently evaluating the progress of those impacted.
Under the Framework Agreement, the government and Alibaba Group will jointly build a cloud computing data center in Macau. Alibaba Group will only provide technical support, without having access to any government data, which is to be stored in Macau and not transferred overseas. JZ